Backed by legions of devoted fans, Rob Thomas's desire to make a Veronica Mars movie has succeeded in spectacular fashion: the Kickstarter project raised over $2.6 million at press time, with 29 days to go. In fact, the project set a new record, topping $1 million in just 4 hours and 24 minutes. That topped the nominal sequel to Planescape: Torment, which raked in $1 million in about seven hours.

For games, gadgets, music, and movies, Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and others have become a welcome alternative to traditional means of fundraising. In the movie business, that can mean pitching studio after studio, hoping to find a response warm enough for the project to proceed. It's somewhat ironic that movies like Stargate and Buffy the Vampire Slayer end up as TV shows, while TV shows like Firefly and now Veronica Mars have capped themselves off with a movie that wraps things up.

In some cases, though, that movie is a necessity, from a creative point of view. Writing a TV series is inherently uncertain. Show rarely earn the certainty of at least two seasons, where an episodic drama can be spaced out over time. More often, shows like FlashForward, The Event, and The Cape end suddenly, as studios pull the plug when audiences fail to materialize. Then it's off to Netflix, the savior of failed series that can be bought on the cheap.

At this point, there's no indication that any more of our favorite shows will earn themselves another 90 minutes or so as part of a movie treatment. (In some cases, Firefly fans might argue, a movie like Serenity just made the chance of a revived series even more remote.) Still, we all have our geeky favorites, and here are 10 (plus a bonus!) that PCMaggers hope will reappear on the big screen. Suggest any others in the comments.

1
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.

The writers of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade took on the Western with this Fox flop in 1994. Starring Bruce Campbell, the show ended by watching Brisco settle in as the sheriff of a small town, which should have easily paved the way for a second season. We say give the Orb and Brisco's array of Wild Wild West steampunk gadgets another shot.
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2
Battlestar Galactica

This could be a trickier one, as the Galactica ends her voyage during the show, and the human-Cylon cycle appears to be complete. Caprica wasn't really worth the effort, but Blood and Chrome offered a nice look back at a younger Adama. Could there be a story within the Galactica universe that could stand alone as a movie, without disrupting the continuity?
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3
Deep Space Nine

Come on. Classic Trek has had its shot. So did the Voyager crew. It's time for Sisko and his team to have its turn in the spotlight. We're rooting for a story about Section 31, the secret police of the Federation. Just try to avoid the weirder Mirror Universe and time-travel plots, okay?
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4
The Prisoner

The 1967 British cult classic pitted the prisoner, Number Six, against a variety of mysterious agents - and a balloon - in the employ of Number Two (who was himself under the control of an unseen Number One). By the end of the series Number Six leaves the village. But why shouldn't he return? And he might: Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins) has been said to be attached to a script.
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5
Alphas

Although some dismissed it as SyFy's version of Heroes, the first season of the show, at least, was engaging, with imperfect heroes with limited superpowers. Unfortunately, the series, which wrapped Season 2 last year, was not renewed, ending unresolved. Why not wrap it up in a movie? (And no, not one that appears on SyFy, either.)
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6
Lost

The epilogue to the 2004-2010 ABC TV series, found within the series box set, is titled "New Man in Charge." Ben Linus asks Walt to go back to the island, with Hurley. "You're not crazy, dude," Hurley says. "You just need to go back to the island. It's where you belong, it's where you've always belonged." "Why?" Walt asks. "We'll talk to you about a job," Hurley replies. And the three drive off. Bingo!
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7
Community

"I had to start from a position in my head that Community wasn’t a sitcom. I had to write the pilot as if it was a movie," show creator Dan Harmon toldThe Onion's AV Club. "Or else I wouldn’t be able to get through it." The only question is: which movie? The cult comedy hit has parodied several movie and TV shows, including the Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns and Dr. Who.
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8
Xena, Warrior Princess

Seriously, why not? OK, we don't really remember anything about this TV show, save for Lucy Lawless bounding through the air, lots of yodeling, and that silver flying disc thing, but a remake could totally work. Just don't make it too serious; the original series didn't. (Image)

9
SeaQuest DSV

How awesome was this show when it first appeared in 1993? Steven Spielberg oversaw it as the executive producer, and Roy Scheider helmed the futuristic submarine as the creator and captain. Yes, it had a goofy dolphin, and the series premise was more about guarding the deep sea, rather than fighting it. But of they can make a Battleship movie, then surely we can find a bit more mystery a few fathoms down...
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10
The IT Crowd

If you haven't seen this British comedy about an IT department, you must. (It's on Netflix instant streaming, among other places.) Yes, episodic humor is tough to reproduce in a movie, but surely there's enough material? Put Maurice, Jen, and Roy into a fictional U.K. trade show (in reality, they're pretty awful) and have at it.
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11
The Walking Dead

While The Walking Dead may not be the geekiest show on TV, pretty much all geeks love zombies (and the video games). And in a world completely overrun by the dead, that means there are literally billions of stories to be told. Change the setting: the Bay Area? The Pacific Northwest? China? World War Z may solve the zombie fix, but the great thing about Dead is that you don't need a big budget: sign some decent actors, invest in a script, and tell the residents of a small town to enjoy a week or two off. That's it.
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About the Author

Mark Hachman Mark joined ExtremeTech in 2001 as the news editor, after rival CMP/United Media decided at the time that online news did not make sense in the new millennium.
Mark stumbled into his career after discovering that writing the great American novel did not pay a monthly salary, and that his other possible career choice, physics, require... See Full Bio

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